British musician, DJ and actor Boy George was hurled toward fame
as the lead singer of 80's band Culture Club, with whom he delivered
the massive hit singles "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?"
and "Karma Chameleon." He later went solo and made many
albums, including Sold (1987), Tense Nervous Headache (1988),
Boyfriend (1989) and High Hat (1989). He also scored a hit with a
version of the song "The Crying Game," which was featured
on the movie of the same name in 1992. Additionally, beginning from
the early 1990s, George has created a second career as a DJ and has
garnered attention on the U.K. and U.S. club circuits.

“I'm bisexual... when I want sex, I buy it.” Boy
George

The 6' artist, known for his flamboyant appearance back in the 80s
and early 90s, was listed as one of “the most influential gay
men and women” in the Independent on Sunday [UK] 2006 Pink
List, and was named one of the 100 greatest Britons by a poll
directed by the BBC in 2002. He was involved with Kirk Brandon (born
on August 3, 1956; dated from 1980 to 1981), singer for the rock band
Spear of Destiny, and Jon Moss (born on September 11, 1957; dated in
the 1980s), the drummer for Culture Club.

“Funnily enough, really cold, uptight, aggressive types,
that wouldn't give me a second look. Indifference, what an
aphrodisiac! Have you ever heard the saying 'the victim identifying
with the persecutor'? Seriously, I like vulnerability, nice eyes and
a kind heart. I don't mind a bit of pudge or skinny guys. I'm not a
size queen either.” Boy George (on kind of men he goes for)

George, who suffers from depression, overcame a heroin addiction
that nearly killed him in 1987 by electro-acupuncture treatment. Some
of his friends had already died of overdoses, one of whom was
keyboardist and “Sexuality” co-writer Michael Rudetsky,
who was found dead in George's home in August 1986. George was
charged for possession of cannabis by the British police back in July
1986 and was arrested in Manhattan on suspicion of possessing cocaine
later in October 2005. More recently, in April 2007, he was arrested
for allegedly assaulting and falsely imprisoning a man in his East
London home.

“I tend to deal with depression by being angry, which is
probably not a good thing. What really makes me depressed? I guess
sometimes there's a revelation that you're on your own no matter how
many people you know. That's quite depressing.” Boy George

George Alan

Childhood and Family:

In Eltham, Kent, England, UK, George Alan O'Dowd, who would later
be famous as Boy George, was born on June 14, 1961. He has four
brothers: David O'Dowd, Gerald O'Dowd, Kevin O'Dowd, Richard O'Dowd,
and a sister named Siobhan O'Dowd. He was raised in a large,
working-class Irish family.

Karma Chameleon

Career:

“When it comes to DJing, I'm more of a shit stirrer than a
mixer.” Boy George

Possessing an androgynous style, Boy George, who was a visible
figure in the London club scene at the time, attracted the attention
of music executive Malcolm McLaren, who is best known as the Sex
Pistols manager. McLaren then set up various shows for George
alongside the group Bow Wow Wow, featuring Annabella Lwin. During the
shows, George, who took the stage name Lieutenant Lush, almost stole
the show.

After ending his relationship with Bow Wow Wow, George formed his
own group called In Praise Of Lemmings, with bassist Mikey Craig.
Drummer Jon Moss and guitarist Roy Hay subsequently joined the group.
The group's name then changed into Sex Gang Children before
eventually picking the name Culture Club.

In the UK, the band signed with Virgin Records, and in America,
they signed with Epic Records. Their debut album was launched in
1982, titled Kissing To Be Clever, which was anchored by the
international hit "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" The
single peaked at #1 in sixteen countries and topped at #2 in America.
Other hit singles followed, including "Time (Clock Of The
Heart)," which went to #2, and "I'll Tumble 4 Ya,"
which climbed to #9. This achievement made the group the first group
since the Beatles to amass at least three top 10 hits on the
Billboard Hot 100 from a debut album.

Colour By Numbers, Culture Club's follow-up album, became another
big hit thanks to the worldwide number one single "Karma
Chameleon," the group's biggest hit and only U.S. Number-one,
topping at #1 for three weeks on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1984
and peaking at #1 in sixteen countries worldwide. In the UK, the
single stayed on the chart for six weeks and became the biggest
selling single of the year. Singles "Church Of The Poison Mind"
(featuring Helen Terry), "Miss Me Blind," "It's A
Miracle" and "Victims" also received good positions in
charts.

Meanwhile, alongside Roy Hay, George wrote the songs "The
Dream" and "Love is Love," as well as the P. P. Arnold
song "Electric Dreams" (he co-wrote with Phil Pickett) for
the movie soundtrack Electric Dreams, director Steven Barron's 1984
film about a love triangle between a man, a woman and a home
computer, which stars Lenny Von Dohlen, Virginia Madsen and Bud Cort
(voice). The now-famous singer was then selected as one of the lead
vocals on the Band Aid single "Do They Know It's Christmas."
He was also spotted as a guest in a 1986 episode of the NBC action
adventure series “The A-Team.”

Due to George's growing addiction to drugs in late 1985, Culture
Club's musical success began to decline. Their 1986 album From Luxury
to Heartache took so long to finish that producer Arif Mardin had to
disband the sessions and handed it to engineer Lew Hahn to record the
final vocals. George often needed days to finish songs like "Gusto
Blusto" and "Reasons." The album also spawned the
singles "Move Away" and "God Thank You Woman,"
which only reached #31 in the UK.

George was charged with possession of cannabis by the British
police in July 1986 and after the death of keyboardist Michael
Rudetski (died of a heroin overdose in George's home), an American
Culture Club tour was canceled and the band parted ways in late 1986.

While struggling to fight his drug addiction, George started to
record his first solo album. He enjoyed several hit singles including
"Everything I Own" (UK #1), "Keep Me In Mind" (UK
#29), "To Be Reborn" (UK #13) and “Sold” (UK
#24), from his debut album Sold in 1987. However, he couldn't bring
his UK success to America, mainly because he couldn't fly to America
because of his previous drug charges. Nevertheless, he still managed
to score a moderate hit with the song "Live My Life" (#40
US) from the Hiding Out soundtrack. He also released his second US
album, High Hat, which delivered the only hit single, the R&B
number "Don't Take My Mind On A Trip." Produced by Teddy
Riley, the song climbed to the Top 5 on the R&B chart. He also
scored a big underground acid house hit with the song “No
Clause 28 (Emilio Pasquez Space Face Full Remix),” which was a
protest against the governing UK Conservative Party's legal
restrictions on anyone working for a local authority promoting
homosexuality.

A cover of the song "The Crying Game" (produced by the
Pet Shop Boys), which was featured on the Neil Jordan movie of the
same name, was George's last major hit single. It climbed to #22 on
the UK singles chart and #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart
in the USA. Although he made many recordings between 1990 and 1994,
including a pop and world-music oriented album called Popularity
Breeds Contempt (1992; set to be released with the pseudonym Jesus
Loves You), none of them surfaced.

"My first real DJ gig was at Venus in Nottingham for the
pre-David Beckham sarong wearing legend James Ballie. I took my tunes
in a cardboard box and played alongside MC Kinky, while Jeremy and
Danny Rampling took care of the main dance floor." Boy George

George began working as a DJ in the early 90's and was asked by
legendary rave house promoters Fantazia to mix one of the discs in
their new compilation series Fantazia The House Collection 2, which
went gold in the UK. He was later hired by London mega club Ministry
of Sound to compile one of their first CDs, which sold 100,000
copies.

1995 saw the release of George's rock-driven album, Cheapness And
Beauty. The number "Same Thing in Reverse" was a minor US
hit, but the album itself was not successful. The follow-up album,
tentatively named Too Spooky, was recorded in spring 1996 but was not
released due to George's problems with Virgin Records. Some of the
songs were sold on the internet and released by minor labels. That
same year, Harper Collins also published the autobiography of George,
“Take It Like A Man.”

In 1997, George was involved in a new group called Shallow, which
later was re-named Dubversive, alongside long-time musicians John
Themis and Richie Stevens. Unfortunately, the trip-hop, dub and
reggae oriented group was shelved because of a lack of interest by
record companies. Their song later appeared on the 2002 Culture Club
Box set and some others were sold on the Internet in 2004.

Meanwhile, Culture Club reunited in July 1998 by performing in
Monte Carlo and joining Human League and Howard Jones in a "Big
Rewind" tour of the US. They also made their first appearance in
14 years in Britain and appeared on “Late Night with David
Letterman” in August that year. They delivered a Top 5 hit in
the UK with "I Just Wanna Be Loved" and later a top 30 hit
with "Your Kisses are Charity" the following year.

George also released several dance oriented tracks in various
countries with some other labels. In Italy, he released "Love is
Leaving," which reached the Top 3 in the country, and in
Switzerland, he released "When Will You Learn," which
peaked at #1 on the country's charts. He also worked on songs with
several dance oriented acts, including the slow-paced track "Why
Go" with Faithless and "Innocence Is Lost" with Groove
Armada.

“Taboo,” the hit musical play based on his life, was
George's project during 2001 to 2004. Performed in London in
2002-2003, the play was later brought to Broadway for one hundred
performances. George, who wrote all the original songs included in
the show, received critical acclaim and was nominated for a Tony
Award for the "Best Musical Score."

U Can Never B2 Straight, an "unplugged" collection of
George's rare and lesser known acoustic works featuring the
unreleased numbers from previous years, as well as some ballads from
Cheapness And Beauty and the Culture Club album Don't Mind if I Do,
was released only in the UK and Japan in 2002 to good reviews. The
record only rose to #147 on the UK album charts and received almost
no promotion from Virgin Records.

Under the pseudonym "the Twin," George tried his hand at
electronica during 2002 to 2004, which was marked by the release of
limited edition 7" singles and promo records. He delivered
innovative, but not commercially marketable, materials during this
session. He also performed in such small venues as the Nag Nag Club.

A collection-of-cover album with a collaboration with electronic
combo T-Total recorded in the Spring of 2003 was also shelved,
arguably due to George's various interest to photography, writing and
fashion. He also mentioned an unreleased album for summer 2005 called
Straight, featuring the numbers "Panic" and "Talking
Love." When a book with the same name was released in 2005, four
tracks of the recording were featured as a sampler.

In August 2006, George was set to release a reggae oriented EP,
but again, it was shelved. He declined to join Culture Club's reunion
tour in 2006 and was replaced by vocalist Sam Butcher.

More recently, in January of 2007, George released "Time
Machine" on Plan A Records. It was co-written by double Ivor
Novello Award winning songwriter Amanda Ghost. Next, George, who has
worked with the Beach Boys, Caron Wheeler, Charlotte Church, Mica
Paris and many other artists, was set to work with Australian singer
Kylie Minogue for her upcoming album scheduled to be released
sometime in 2007. In his own dance oriented music label, More
Protein, George also has written many tracks for artists like Eve
Gallagher, Zee Asha, Lippy Lou, and E-Zee Possee. He is currently
working on an upcoming solo project, an LP which apparently will be
including some reggae, pop and acoustic songs.

George also continued DJing and recently being a special guest DJ
at the GLBT nightspot, The Court Hotel in Perth, Western Australia,
Hordern Pavilion in Sydney for the Mardi Gras Festival, and at the
launch party for the Palazzo Versace in Dubai, UAE. Additionally, he
has been running his own fashion line called "B-Rude,"
which has been appeared in some fashion shows in London, New-York and
Moscow.

“I had started DJing around the UK in about 1989. A handful
of promoters like Charlie Chester, Russell and Pete at Progress and
the crew at Arena in Middlesborough booked me to play and allowed me
to learn in public. Some might say I am still doing that but most
things in life are a work in progress. I had done a few back room
sets for Debbie and Rick, who threw the big, glamorous Puscha raves
and that led to other promoters offering me work. I also played for
my friend Philip Sallon at The Mud Club at Bagley's warehouse in
Kings Cross. My career as a DJ was never planned, it just grew out of
a few nervous gigs for friends, but I started to love it. My manager
was absolutely horrified that I was DJing for three hundred pounds a
night in dingy clubs and thought it would destroy my reputation.”
Boy George (on how DJing became his second career)

Straight, George's second autobiographical book, was published by
Century in 2005. Written by author Paul Gorman (ghost writer of Cry
Salty Tears, the memoirs of George's mother Dinah O'Dowd), the book
stayed on The Sunday Times bestseller list for six weeks. In spring
2007, its paperback version with new material will be published.

George, who wrote a weekly column in The Daily Express, wrote the
foreword for a feng shui book called "Practical Feng Shui"
by Simon G. Brown (published in 1998). He also collaborated with
Dragana G. Brown to publish his own cookbook, "Karma Cookbook"
(2001), which contains many macrobiotic (and vegetarian) recipes.

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Veteran British pop star Boy George is constantly having to convince fans he really is the Culture Club frontman after losing his trademark falsetto due to age.The flamboyant Karma Chameleon singer be...

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